Free Talk Live

For those interested in the science behind authoritarian sociopathy no studies are more poignant, or more chilling in their ramification than the Milgram Experiment and the Stanford Prison Experiment. But their sentiment was perhaps best expressed by Thomas Jefferson in an often overlooked passage of the Declaration of Independence:

“All experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed.”

What's the best business reaction to a recession? How about none at all. Unlike many outfits in the struggling restaurant industry, Panera, the soup and sandwich chain with more than 1,300 stores in 38 states, has stayed strong by standing still.

The ancient Romans made their circenses a centerpiece of public policy, along with free bread (panem -- also the name of the nation ruled by the "Capitol" in the movie). But they found that the spectacle of merely feeding people to lions, with no chance to win, became less popular than the gladiatorial contests, and that the gladiators wouldn't put on a good show unless they had a chance.

The Bread of Life Mission, which has served the homeless community in Pioneer Square for more than 70 years, said the city has directed them to stop feeding the hungry in downtown parks. (audio with the article)

A French TV documentary features people in a spoof game show administering what they are told are near lethal electric shocks to rival contestants. Those taking part are told to pull levers to inflict shocks - increasing in voltage - upon their opponents. Although unaware that the contestants were actors and there was no electrical current, 82% of participants in the Game of Death agreed to pull the lever.

The United States apologized on Friday for an experiment conducted in the 1940s in which U.S. government medical researchers deliberately infected Guatemalan prison inmates with syphilis.

Funny 911 Call from guy who at some weed spiked brownies. The guy is a cop from Dearborn, Mighigan. Video shows WTF messages.

The Lucifer Effect by Philip Zimbardo is an in depth study of mankind’s capacity for evil, beginning with the first complete treatise on the Stanford Prison Experiment ever published, and ending with the atrocities committed by US soldiers in Abu Ghraib. But as I was reading, I kept thinking of Ron Paul and the ongoing controversy between the libertarians and anarchists as to whether supporting his campaign is the right thing to do. I think this book has settled the issue for me.

The Coming Insurrection benefited from an "endorsement" from Glenn Beck. As part of a seven-minute rant on Fox News in July, he said, "I am not calling for a ban on this book. It's important that you read this book." Since then, each time Beck has talked about the book, sales have spiked, according to MIT Press associate publicist Diane Denner. It's latest jump came after Beck devoted an entire segment to The Coming Insurrection, which he called "quite possibly the most evil thing I've ever read."